Picker spindle lubricator



0t 29, 194). v. H. JENNINGS PICKER SPINDLE LUBHICTORI Filed June 17, 1939 FIL?. 5

lNvENron Vncron H. TENNlNcfs um? ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 29, 1940 PATENT 'OFFICE PICKER SPINDLE LUBnIoA'roR Victor H. Jennings, Worcester, Mass., assignor to Crompton & Knowles Loom Works, Worcester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application June 17, 1939, Serial No. 279,697

s claims.'

This invention relates Vto improvements in lubricators for picker spindles and it is the general object of the invention to provide means by which the spindle may be lubricated during operation of the loom without attention on .the part of the weaver.

In certain types of looms the shuttle is actuated by a picker which slides along a rod or spindle fastened tothe lay behind the shuttle. As the lay -reaches approximately mid position in its backward stroke, or at so-calledtop center, the picker is moved along the spindle .toward the center of the loom .to'eject the shuttle from the shuttle box. This motionoccurs every other beat of v the loomY on those looms which have automatic weft replenishment, but; on certain types of looms which are employed more particularly for the weaving of fancy fabrics the picker may-slide along its spindle every beat ofthe. loom. In either type of loom it is customary for the weaver to move the lay to its back center positionk after `the loom has been stopped bythe breakage of lling, and remove the shuttle by pushing .the picker stick and picker inwardly or toward the center of the loom. It is an important object of my present invention t-o provide a control for a pickery spindle lubricator which shall operate to deposit a thin film of oil on the spindle when the lay-is-in -the back center position during'normal loom operation, but in which the lubricator is moved outof contacting position with the spindle when theloom is 'stopped to permit manual removal of lthe shuttle. This result I conveniently achieve by mounting the lubricator on' a carrier `connected to the shipper mechanism of the loom.

In certain types of looms-the return of the picker-to normal or starting position after a pick-` ing stroke is controlled by some part of the loom.

In lsuch looms the picker will be near the innerr 40 end of the spindle von one back center position and will be'near the outer end ofthe spindle on the following back center position of the lay. It is another object of my present invention to place the lubricator at such a position thatit will lubricate the 'picker spindle'at a point between theinner and outer'positions of the picker. In this way the'inner end of the spindle bore is lubricated on vone pick of the'loom while the outer end of the bore is lubricated on .the next pick of the loom. In this way oil enters .the bore from each end thereof.

It is a still further object of my invention to provide a mounting for the lubricator which will permit the same to be adjusted in a direction 1on- A,gitudinallyof the lay so that it may be caused to venient embodiment of my invention is set forth, 10

Fig. 1 is a plan View of one end of aloom having my invention applied thereto,

Fig. 2 is an end elevation looking in the direction of arrow 2, Fig. 1, and showing .the loom in running position, 5

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic-,view similar to Fig. 2 1 Showing the loom in stopped position,-

Fig. 4 is a detail front Aelevation of the mounti-ng of thelubricator looking in the ydirection of arrowv'ILFig. 1*,.an d4 j' Y' Fig. 5 is a detailvertical'section on line 5 5 of Fig. 1 showing 4thecontroller forthe picker and picker stick.

Referring to-the drawing,.the loom frame I is provided with ala-yfII `mounted on lay swords I2 .'25

pivotedas at YI3'. .f'The layv moves back and forth in the loom,for to the right andgleft as ,viewed in Fig. 2, and has a complete reciprocation each beat of thefloom, The lay has-ajshuttle box I4'to receive a shuttle Swhich is propelled by a picker I5. 36

The latter slidesv along aspindle I6 extending between Ainner and outer` supports I'I vand I8, re-

spectively, securedfto,y the lay; A picker stick I9 moves from voui.er.to an inner'position, or from the left .to the right vas viewed inFig. 1, to propel 35 the shuttle from the shuttle box and cause the picker to slide along .the` spindle.

The loom isprovided with-a'shipper handle `2l) on ashipper rod 52|. By connections notshown herein but well understoodthe shipper handle is connected to the -driving mechanism not'shown of the loom., IIt--isvthought sufficient for present purposes .-tov'state that when the shipper handle has been Ypulled'- forwardly "or to the right as viewed in Fig. 2 the", driving mechanism' is con- 45 nected .to drive thei1oo1n'and.`when the loom is to be stoppedtheshipp'er `handley is moved r'earwardly or to the left from the position shown in Fig. 2 to that 'shown in'Fig; 3, at which timethe driving mechanism is disconnected from the loom 50 I and vthe latter comes .to rest. The loom may be stopped because of a broken weft thread, in which case the weaver will ordinarily move the lay manu'ally to backcenter position to open the shed so that the broken thread maybe Withdrawn and at 5:5

vto

2 the same time permit removal of the shuttle from the shuttle box so that a new supply of weft can be inserted therein or the shuttle rethreaded preparatory to the resumption of weaving operations.

The bottom shaft 25 of the loom -turnsonce for two beats of the loom as usual and has secured thereto a picking arm 26 on which-.is mounted ar picker roll 21 for engagement With'apicker cam 28. The latter is mounted on a picker shaft 29 which extends from front to back of the loom and carries at its forward end an upstanding arm 3l) to the top of which is attached a lugsstrapl .at-.

tached to the Picker stick I9 pivoted vat 33.....By

this arrangement the picker stiokis givenanfop-.n erative shuttle propelling motion every o ther-beatafl of the loom. The effect of the roll 21 and cam 28 is to move the picker from the dot-and Adashline position of Fig. 1 to the right to some such'posiw.

tion as that indicated in dotted lines while the -lay is moving rearwardly." f

In order to control thefreturnv'of thepickeranl eccentric or cam Tis fastened to the' bottom shaft 25 and-has-a-relatively^high-areal'36 which contactswith a cam follower131 n'iovingwithrthe` cam. A28;. i As soon kas Athe-l.pickiing'fstroke lis com# pleted the high point 36 fof the' cam-35 'moves overthe-follower 31 to prevent `suddenreturn of thepickerk camv 28 4'and parts'controlled thereby to normal 1 starting position) by the` usualreturn spring '38.; 1. Asthe bottomshaft continues to turn,

however, the follower'131 v'rises gradually" because of theshape of cam 35 andlfw'il-l-fleavethellatterA when rthe llow rpoint 39 lpasses lfrom" controlling position with respect to the follower-31;l

Because.`l of the "action of cam 35 the 'picker' will" be held in the dottedLln'efpositloii of Fig'kl until the full line position of Fig. 1.

sition of Fig.r1 aftercam 35 relea'ses follower -31.

As the shuttle` enters ltheibox the picker f slides -amount of feed of the'oil to loelregulated;y As

against the "action of the .check `from the fulll to the dot andxdash-positionfshown -in Fig. -1.

It is .to be `understoodthatfthe 1`partsoperate in such "a way .that thelpickerds in fthe'dotted' line rposition'ishownfin Fig". 1 whe'nfthe laylis on back center of that- `beat yfonwhich: the shuttle is the lay is on back centerA on the"ffollowing-beat the'picker willbein-thefull line position. It will be seen thatfthefsdistance between v-theseetvt'fopo-r ,s itions is considerably. more than vthe-length of i the picker measured along theispindle While I have"des'cribed-zthepicker stick-'cone trollingcamz35.andthe'rcheckI C I wishit to be understood that I- amenotlirnited in thepractice 35 yandicheckf'arefused however; my `:invention possesses'fadditional: .advantages/ which- -will be pointed out l'ierein'afters;i`

construction; and except las 'indicated hereinafter at rest.

In operation, `while the loom is stopped theshipper handleV will be in the left hand position Ward position of Fig. 2 to the rearward stopping position of Fig. 3, and the weaver can move the lay manually to the rear position to permit removal of the shuttle from the box.

In carrying my invention into effect I provide a stand 40 secured to the loom frame and having a horizontal hub 4 I which receives a stud 42 ro- .tatable therein and having a vertical bore 43 to receive the vertical arm 44 of a lubricatorcarrier lever 45. A set screw 46 holds the arm 44 .in .vertically adjusted position on the stud. The

carrier lever has a horizontal arm which extends substantiallyparallel to the lay and spindle behind thelatter. .Anoil reservoir 50 containing a liquid lubricant .L, which may be machine oil, carries a flexible wickelement 5| immersed in the oil. The wick extends forwardly from the reservoir and is made-of fibrous material to be suflicientlyY fiexible to yield when in contact with the spindle. The reservoir is mounted on the armv41 and is heldin both'longitudinal'and an- `gularly adjusted position with respectA to 4said arm 41 by means of a set screw 53.

The lower end of the vertical arm 44 is pivotally connected as at to a rod 56 extending forwardly and connectedl as at 51 to the lower I end of the shipper handle'20. Byreason of this connection the position of the reservoir and the wick 5I are.given either of two positions with respect to the range of movement of the spindle,

depending upon whether the loom is running or indicated in Fig. 3 the effect of which is to move the rod 56 and lower' endof arm 44 forwardly 50 in its rearward position. with the wick out of the .path 'of'.thelpicker. When'fthe loom-is setv Vin operation fthe. shipper :handle will be moved forwardly.' or vto therright, from the position in Fig. 3 to that shownf in Fig. 2, at which timetheV -vertical 'arm'144is rocked inla clockwise direc-` tion as viewed vin Fig.:3 and theireservoir 50 at the-upper' end` of said iarm. `is moved forwardly so that; the flexible wick. 5l will be in position long as the loomacontinues` to run the wick 5l will touch the rear part of the spindle I6 at each v backward motion.v of the lay and will leave a small film of oil on the spindle in the path of the picker.

y In Fig. 2 the spindle'and` lay'are shown in fulll lines in the picking position-audit is in.thi`s` position that'xthe picker will slide along the spindle.- It will beseen from thisiigure, however,

vthat'thevwick 5l is behind the spindle a suicient distance toloe; out of the pathof the-picker at the timeof picking and when the lay reaches back center position, indicated'by dotted lines in Fig. '2, the spindle vvI6 willcontact with the wick \.5|.. When thefloom -stops either automatically or by the will of the weaver theshipper handle `willgmoveV to the1rear position shown tin Fig. 3 with resultant backward shift of the reservoir to r the position shown in Figi 3 with the wick 5| out of the path of the picker indicated in dotted line position when the lay is on back center.

^ The weaver may therefore move the picker stick' forms'no .part 4of .myypresent; :.invention. The` shipper. handle: 20 :is movedz'either'f'manually vor f" automatically. bythefloonnfromfthe runningfor-z i manually toward thecenter of the loom to eject the shuttle from the shuttle box without causing contact between-the'pickerand the-wick. This or to the right andvtherefore place the reservoir is a matterof considerable practical importance,` since I have found that certain previously proposed lubricators have been so constructed as to lie in the path of the picker on the shuttle re`l moving operation. By reason of the control deadvantages and operation already described is inr no way dependent upon the control of the picker exercised by the cam 35, but I have found that additional advantages in the lubrication of the picker spindle accompanies such a picker contro-l when the lubricator is adjusted' along the horizontal arm 41 to such a position that the wick will contact the spindle at a point between the inner and outer positions of the picker shown respectively in dotted and full lines, respectively, in Fig. l. When in this position the wick 50'will deposit a film of o-il in front of the picker when the latter is to move inwardly on a picking stroke, and behind the picker before it starts its return motion. In this way the forward part of the bore of the picker is lubricated on alternate beats'of the loom, and the outer or rear part of the picker bore is lubricated on the intervening picks.

While I have described fthe cam 35 in connection with the two positions of the picker I wish to state that it has the additional eifect of delaying immediately return of the picker to its outer position on the picking stroke of the loom. By the action of the high point 36 the picker is held in an inner position during the time that the lay passes through back center and starts forwardly, and by this relation assurance is given that the picker will not return under the action of spring 38 until the lay has moved far enough forwardly from that center position to prevent engagement of the returning picker and the wick 5|. This advantage accrues from the use of cam 35, but I am not obliged to use this cam in order to secure certain benefits of my invention, inasmuch as the lubricator can be moved along arm 41, or the center `of the loom from the position shown in Fig. 1 with satisfactory results if the cam 35 is omitted.

From the foregoing it will be seen that I have provided a picker spindle lubricator which is under control of the mechanism which drives the loom with the result that when the loom is running the rearward motion of the lay acts automatically to deposit a film of lubricant on the' spindle I6, but when the loom is stopped the lubricator is moved out of the path of the picker and the latter may therefore be moved along the spindle to move the shuttle out of the box even though the lay be at back center position. It will further be seen that in those looms which are equipped with the cam 35 and mechanism connected to it for controlling the position of the picker, the oil film is deposited in front of the picker on alternate beats of the loom and behind the picker on intervening picks, with the result plurality of positions and furthermore permits a vertical adjustment of the reservoir to enable 'the wick to engage the spindle throughout a limited degree of vertical adjustment.

Having thus described my invention it will be seen that changes and modifications may be'made therein by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention and Ido not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, but what I claim is:

1. In a loom having a lay reciprocating through a given range of movement, loom controlling means to stop and start the loom, a spindle lubricato'r mounted for movement with respect to said range, and connections between the lubricator and the loom controlling means to move the lubricator into said range to contact the spindle when the loom is running and move said lubricator out of said range when the loom is stopped.

2. In aloom having a lay reciprocating through a given range `of movement, loom controlling means to stop and start the loom, a lubricator movable with respect to said range, and means to cause the lubricator to move with the loom controlling means to place the lubricator within said range to contact the spindle when the loom is running and place said lubricator out of said range when the loom is stopped.

3. In a loom having a lay reciprocating through a given range of movement, loom controlling means to stop and start the loom, a lubricator having a exible spindle engaging element, means to mount the lubricator and element for movement with respect to said range, and connections between the loom controlling means and the lubricator to move the exible element into said range to contact the spindle when the loom is running and move said element out of said range when the loom is stopped.

4. In a loom having a picker spindle movable through a given range of movement during loom operations, a picker on said spindle having a bore extending along the spindle and through which the latter extends, the picker being movable from normal position along the spindle with one end of the bore advancing during a picking operation of the loom as the spindle moves toward one extreme of its range of movement, means to lubricate the spindle at a point along which the picker travels when the spindle is in said extreme of its range of movements, means to prevent movement of the picker through said point along the spindle toward normal position until after the spindle has moved away from said extreme of its range of movements, vand means to thereafter move the picker back to normal position with the other end of the bore advancing, whereby both ends of the bore are lubricated by movement of the picker past said point on a complete picking operation `of the picker. k

5. In a loom having a picker spindle to be lubricated, a lubricator to have contact with the spindle to lubricate the same, a lever having an arm substantially parallel to the spindle and on which the lubricator is mounted, said lever having a second arm extending transversely of the first arm, means carried by the loom defining a pivotal support for the lever, shipper mechanism for the loom, and connections betweenl the shipper mechanism and the second arm of the lever to rock said lever to place the lubricator in lubricating position with respect to the spindle when the shipper mechanism is in running position and rock said lever in the opso i" from the yspindle/When the shippermechanismis in stopping position. 4

6. In a loom l'lalllillgfaf-picker spindle to be lubricated, a lubricatorzto -have contact with the spindle to lubricate the same, a lever'having an arm `substantiallyV parallel `to the spindle and tion and rock said-lever in the opposite direction to move` said lubricator awayfrorn the spindleA When-the shipper mechanism is in stopping posiltion, andmeans to adjust the second arm` of the levertransversely of `said pivotal'yconnection -to vary. the distance of the rstarmof the lever U from the axisof the latter.

7. In a loom having a picker spindleto be lubricated, va lubricator'to yhave Contact Withnthelyspindlefto lubricate the same, a lever having anY arm substantially parallelv to the spindle and on Which the lubricatoris mounted-,said lever hav-- ing a second arm extending 'transversely fof the rst arm-means carried, bythe loom defining a pivotal support for the lever, shipper mechanism forthe loom,` connections ,between the shipper mechanism and thesecond arm of theI lever to positek direction to 'move saidy lubricator -awayrockveidfflever its plate theflubreatorfin lubriw v ithr Catinagposit n s. 9pm-site direction to more, endemica-tn away ,fromfihe spindle spe-.Ct 'te the. fspindlewhen 1 0f plurality Qf angular positions: with respect :I

to the first arm of the leven--v 8. Ina loom having a'reciprocatinglay anda picker spindle thereon moving to a given ezdzremeI position for; each (beat of theloomLa picker havingL a bore-throughNhich rthefspindle extends, means to holdthepicker,adjacent one end of the spindle when the lattersis in saidY given extreme positionon-one beatof the loom, means, to move thel picker alonggthe; spindle to a position yadjacent the other end-of said spindle, means to hold said pickergadjacentgthe other-.end of thespindle when the-latteris in saidgivenfextremeposition on the; next beat ,of the gloom.-me ans operative v when the spindleis in sa-id, given, extreme .position ,to Yluloricate the spindlez'at a point along which -the-l pickergtravels, "and-,means to return the picker to a position adjaentthe rst namedv 5 end'- of :the spindle after ,thelatter has -moved-vv avvayfl from said given extreme positionv on said next-beat .of the loom, Awhereby-one end of the bore lis advancingiand-is lubricated-,opone beat of the-loom, fandthe other end of thebore is adthe loom.-

VIO'Il-ORl-H. JENNINGS- 1" '30 l] vancngand is luloricatedfon gthepnext .beat of 

